Pen assembly device



Jan. 4, 1966 E. BIRKETT PEN ASSEMBLY DEVICE Filed Feb. 10, 1964 Ill llll lllllll" 4 mT/W I m Ef m Wm 1h 50/. w m 44 .6 w 0 0% 5mm o I m w a w R n 5 6 4 l 2 J m B If H m M5 v mm mi w W s m a mu" m a EMI- w m 1 F B ATTOR NE Y 3,226,813 PEN ASSEMBLY DEVICE Earl Birkett, West Hempstead, N .Y., (392 W. Broadway, New York, N.Y.). Filed Feb, 10, 1964, Ser. No. 343,749

4 Claims. (Cl. 29-240) Another object of this invention is to provide an ap-,

paratus which will automatically screw a. ball point pen together more tightly Without marking the ball point pen or burnishing printing or gold stamping on the barrel of the ball point pen.

Many other objects, advantages and features of invention reside in the particular construction, combination and arrangement of parts involved in the embodiment of my invention and its practice as will be understood from the following description and accompanying drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a transverse vertical section taken across an automatic pen assemblydevice showing the pen as sembly mechanism of this invention with some portions broken away in section, with a portion of the driving arm broken away, and with the pen gripping jaws in the open position;

FIGURE 2 is a transverse vertical section through a fragment of the pen assembly mechanism of FIGURE 1 with the pen barrel gripping jaws shown in the closed or gripping position about a fragment of a pen barrel;

FIGURE 3 is a top view of a .pen holding element;

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal section taken from above the elevating member ofthe pen assembly device of this invention;

FIGURE 5 is a top view of the rotary slide plate of the pen assembly device of my invention with the gripping arms removed and with associated fragments of slide members in position; and

i United States Patent 0 FIGURE 6 is a schematic drawing of timing cams and three switches which may be used to control the device of this invention.

Referring to the drawing in detail, an endless chain 10 is intermittently driven and has fixed to it the pen holding elements 11. The pen holding elements 11 have a lower square section 12 and an upper cylindrical portion 13. A vertical bore 14 extends through each pen holding element 11. At least one vertical groove 15 extends from the bore 14. The chain 10 is intermittently driven as pen barrels 16 containing cartridges (not shown) are dropped manually or automatically into the bores 14. In a like manner, pen caps 17 are dropped over the cartridges and the pen barrels 16 within the bores 14. Since each pen cap 17 has a clip (not shown) the clip of each pen cap 17 extends into a vertical groove 15 to hold the pen cap 17 from rotation. As shown in FIGURE 5, slide plates 18 and 19 extends below the paths of the elements 11 so that the bottoms of the pen barrels slide along the slide plates 18 and 19 to prevent the pen barrels and caps from falling out of the elements 11.

Both the pen caps 17 and the barrels 16 are threaded and must be screwed together to complete assembly of the pens. However, only the pen barrels need be gripped and rotated as the pen caps areheld from rotation by their clips. FIGURE 1 shows the endless chain 10 this invention which turns the caps 17.

The two horizontal plates 2% and 21 are fixed to the frame of the pen assembly machine. Plate 21 has a disk 22 projecting upward (from it. Ball bearings 23 and 24 rotatably support the abutting vertical shafts 25 and 26. Shaft 26 is rotated by means of pulley 27 and belt 28 which is continuously driven by an electric motor (not shown). Activation of a magnetic clutch 29 en ables shaft 26 to drive shaft 25..

The top of shaft 25 carries the rotary slide plate 30 having the pairs of lateral projections 31 between which the pen gripping arms 32 are pivotally secured by means of the pins 33. Lower extensions 34 extend perpendicularly from the bottom ends of the arms 32. Rollers or small ball bearings 35 are fixed to the ends of the lower extensions 34 to roll on the elevating plate 36 when shaft 25 revolves. Compression springs 68 urge the arms 32 outward and ways 70 are provided to support the bottom of a barrel 16 as it is slid over them when an 7 element 11 is moved by a chain 10.

Referring now to FIGURES l, 2, and 4, elevating plate 36 has the shaft 25 pass freely through it and elevating plate 36 is prevented from rotation by the two pins 37 which extend downward from plate 36 through the bearings 38 in plate 21. Elevating plate 36 is raised by means of element 39 which rotates about shaft 25 and rests directly on disk 22. Element 39 has a projecting arm 40 by which it is rotated. When element 39 ward.

Ann 40, as shown in FIGURE 4, contains a slot 43. A drive arm 44 is pivotally mounted on a shaft 45 so that arm 44 may be pivoted away from a viewer as 1 shown in FIGURE 1 by means of a solenoid 46 or any other suitable device. In one embodiment of this invention, a magnetic clutch driven by an electric motor provided torque to move arm 44. A vertical pin 47 extends upward from the end of drive arm 44 through the slot 43 in arm 40 of element 39. Thus the activation of solenoid 46 rotates element 39 to raise elevating plate 36.

As is further shown in FIGURE 1, pins 49 extend downward from plate 21. Slidably disposed about pins 49 is an orientation plate 50. Orientation plate 50 has an upward and rearwardly sloping surface 51 disposed adjacent to drive arm 44. A member 52 extends downward from drive arm 44 and has a small roller 53 fixed to it. Thus as drive arm 44 pivots rearwardly as shown in FIGURE 1, roller 53 rides upon surface 51 urging the orientation plate 50 downward compressing the light compression springs 54. Fixed to orientation plate 5%) is an orienting clutch member 55 through which shaft 25 freely passes. A corresponding upper orient-ing clutch member 56 is fixed to shaft 55 and may rotate it.

This invention operates to screw a ball point pen together in the following manner. As shown in FIGURE 6,

three timing cams 6t 61 and 62 may be rotated by any suitable means at the same speed. Cam may activate switch 63 to advance chain 10 to position an element 11 over the device of this invention as shown in FIGURE 1 for a relatively long period of time. While an element 11 is in the position shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, timing cam 61 closes switch 64 to activate the solenoid 46 and move the drive arm 44. Drive arm 44 rotates element 39 to raise elevating plate 36 and cause the pen gripping arms 32 to pivot inward into the position shown in FIGURE 2. Blocks 66 faced with rubber 67 grip the barrel 16 of a pen. Timing cam 62 then closes switch to engage clutch 29 and enable shaft 26 to rapidly rotate shaft 25 and the arms 32 to screw the barrel 16 of a pen into a cap 17. A suitable spring arm 67 may be provided to urge the cap 17 downward. The caps 17 are locked against rotation by their clips which extend into the slots 15. When the barrel is completely screwed into a cap 17, the magnetic clutch 29 will slip.

As the timing cams 60, 61 and 62 continue to rotate, switch 65 will open disengaging clutch 29 so that shaft 25 is no longer driven and may rotate freely. As cam 61 continues to rotate, switch 64 opens allowing drive arm 44 to pivot outward as seen in FIGURE 1. This allows element 39 to rotate to its original position lowering plate 36. The compression springs 68 force the arms 32 outward releasing the pen barrel 16. As arm 44 moves, orientation plate 50 is pushed upward by springs 54. The upward moving member 55 engages member 56, regardless of its position, and rotates it into the position shown in FIG- URE 1. This rotates the rotary slide 30 into the proper position so that, when chain again moves an element 11, the ways 70 will be properly aligned and the arms 32 will be on each side of the path of the pen barrels 16.

If it is desired, either the upper or the lower orienting clutch members 55 or 56 may be replaced by a single pin projecting from the plate 50 or from the shaft 25. In one embodiment of this invention, two pins projecting from opposite sides of plate 50 towards shaft 25 engaged the working surfaces of cam 56.

While this invention has been shown and described in the best form known to me, it will nevertheless be understood that this is purely exemplary and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention except as it may be more limited in the appended claims wherein,

I claim:

1. A mechanism for screwing ball point pens together for use with a pen assembly machine having pen holding elements each containing a vertical bore and at least one vertical slot extending from said bore, means intermittent- 1y advancing said pen holding elements, and slide plates disposed below said pen holding elements, said pen holding elements containing pen barrels and caps within said bore, said caps having clips extending into the slot preventing the caps from rotating, said pen barrels resting on said slide plates; said mechanism comprising, in combination, a rotatably mounted vertical shaft, a rotary slide on the top of said shaft between two of said slide plates below the path of said pen holding elements, pen gripping arms pivotally mounted on the sides of said rotary slide, extensions extending outward from the lower portions of said arms, rollers 0n the ends of said extensions, an elevating plate through which said shaft passes disposed below said rotary slide, means raising said elevating plate against said rollers pivoting said arms inward to grip a pen barrel, means rotating said shaft screwing a pen barrel into a cap, and means rotatably orienting said shaft and said rotary slide when said elevating plate is lowered by said means raising said elevating plate.

2. The combination according to claim 1 with the addition of a fixed plate in which said shaft is journalled, and wherein said means raising said elevating plate comprises an element mounted to rotate about said shaft, said element having at least one sloping surface which is advanced when said element is rotated, bearing means depending from said elevating plate in front of each sloping surface, and means rotating said element advancing said at least one sloping surface so that said bearing means rides up said at least one sloping surface raising said elevating plate.

3. The combination according to claim 2 wherein said means orienting said shaft comprises an orienting plate disposed about said shaft, spring means urging said orienting plate along said shaft, cam means on said shaft and said orienting plate aligning said shaft and said rotary slide when said spring means urge said orienting plate along said shaft engaging said cam means, and means moving said orienting plate against said spring means disengaging said cam means when said element is rotated raising said elevating plate.

4. The combination according to claim 3 wherein said orienting plate has a sloping surface and wherein said means rotating said element and said means moving said orienting plate against said spring means comprises a pivotally mounted driving arm engaging said element, said driving arm having a roller engaging the sloping surface of said orienting plate moving said orienting plate against said spring means, and means pivoting said driving arm, pivoting of said driving arm rotating said element.

No references cited.

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

J. C. PETERS, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A MECHANISM FOR SCREWING BALL POINT PENS TOGETHER FOR USE WITH A PEN ASSEMBLY MACHINE HAVING PEN HOLDING ELEMENTS EACH CONTAINING A VERTICAL BORE AND AT LEAST ONE VERTICAL SLOT EXTENDING FROM SAID BORE, MEANS INTERMITTENTLY ADVANCING SAID PEN HOLDING ELEMENTS, AND SLIDE PLATES DISPOSED BELOW SAID PEN HOLDING ELEMENTS, SAID PEN HOLDING ELEMENTS CONTAINING PEN BARRELS AND CAPS WITHIN SAID BORE, SAID CAPS HAVING CLIPS EXTENDING INTO THE SLOT PREVENTING THE CAPS FROM ROTATING, SAID PEN BARRELS RESTING ON SAID SLIDE PLATES; SAID MECHANISM COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A ROTATABLY MOUNTED VERTICAL SHAFT, A ROTARY SLIDE ON THE TOP OF SAID SHAFT BETWEEN TWO OF SAID SLIDE PLATES BELOW THE PATH OF SAID PEN HOLDING ELEMENTS, PEN GRIPPING ARMS PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON THE SIDES OF SAID ROTARY SLIDE, EXTENSIONS EXTENDING OUTWARD FROM THE LOWER PORTIONS OF SAID ARMS, ROLLERS ON THE ENDS OF SAID EXTENSIONS, AN ELE- 